Upon walking into John Petro’s office at Cristo Rey High School, I came across two students who were laughing comfortably in chairs, looking entirely at ease in the company of authority. Petro high-fived the two before they left, and he settled into his chair for the interview.

“I appreciated and liked the competitive nature,” Petro says. “But eventually, I got tired of the industry and started looking for the next step.”

Coincidentally, he was invited to take a tour of Cristo Rey by his friend, a member on the board. Originally, the idea was to have his business team up with the school’s work study program, but he found himself asking if there were any opportunities for him at Cristo Rey.

A few months later, a position opened up, and the requirements checked off all of Petro’s boxes. Everything fell into place, and he became Director of the Work Study Program. From law to education, Petro never expected it.

The work study program is a lot of just that work. And, it involves a long, intricate process. There are 400 students and 120 organizations, and Petro has to build and establish relationships with each of them. Essentially, students are interviewed and matched up with businesses to work once a week for the entire school year. It’s a requirement; part of the curriculum. Students receive letter grades, credit and experience. Ninety percent of the partnered businesses allot a certain amount of money to pay the students, which goes toward their tuition.

“We want our students to do necessary, meaningful work,” Petro says. “We want them to participate in work that adds value to the organization.”

Organically, students form mentor relationships with role models within their work study assignments. Establishing connections and learning from professionals early on helps students learn how to properly navigate communication in different career fields.

The program requires Petro to really get to know his students, as each one is assigned to a business based on their strengths and interests. During the course of our conversation, Petro waved in several students he knew to share a little bit about their experience.

“We have to do better.” - John Petro

Precious Adugyamfi is currently working at the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office. Freshman year she very much wanted to be involved in law, so Cristo Rey assigned her to a law firm. However, they threw her for a loop sophomore year when she was sent to work in a business environment.

“I wasn’t sure at first, but I ended up really enjoying it,” Adugyamfi says. “I was able to really get into the business field – I realize now I have a lot of interest in it.”

Jamia Martin had an entirely different experience. Liking more creative, hands-on work, she was assigned to BalletMet, where she learned how to sew and make costumes. The next year, she worked at the Museum of Art, where she learned that although she did love artistic work, she needed to thrive in a louder atmosphere.

“I got a taste of something different every year,” Martin says. “And that’s going to help me figure out what I want to do after I graduate.”

Other than his efforts in the work study program, Petro is a busy man. He started and coached the first girl’s basketball team at the school, officially becoming part of the OHSAA this year. He’s quite the athlete himself, just having biked the Tour of the Scioto River Valley. Moreover, the last two years Petro biked in Pelotonia.

It’s an impressive schedule, one that Petro remains humble about. He laughs that his mother and three sisters would say he’s always busy because he’s quite spastic and can’t sit still.

“I’m a life-long Columbus person,” he says. “I want to help our community get better. I preach the same thing to our basketball team: every day we have to go out there and get better individually and as a team.”

Petro says a community works the same way.

“Even though Columbus is growing and economically developing, there are a lot of people being left behind,” he says. “We have to do better.”

Mallory Arnold is an assistant editor. Feedback welcome at marnold@cityscenemediagroup.com.